Your Address Requirement

All students in F-1 or J-1 status are required by law to report any address change to the Office of International Affairs (OIA) within 10 days of any change. You are required to report addresses changes the entire time you are in F-1 or J-1 status, including any segment of post-completion OPT or AT. Failure to update your address with OIA will be a violation of your F-1/J-1 status and have a negative immigration impact.

Important Address Formatting Information

USCIS requires that all SEVIS addresses are entered in a very specific format. It is extremely important to follow the address formatting instructions any time you are submitting an address or making any changes. Please review all of the formatting instructions below before making any changes. If you fail to format your address in the required format, we cannot make changes to your record, which will cause negative immigration consequences to your immigration status.

Address Update Instructions

While You are a Student

While you are a student (before your academic program ends), University electronic systems are linked up to obtain your address from your directory information, and we then report changes automatically to SEVIS.

To update your address, for all students EXCEPT students from the Booth School of Business, log-in to my.UChicago.edu. Follow the instructions below:

Instructions for Booth Students

While on OPT or AT

If you use Optional Practical Training (OPT) or Academic Training (AT) after graduation, you need to report address changes directly to our office since you are no longer linked on the electronic systems to report changes from your school's directory. Submit the OPT Update Form or AT Update Form to our office in person or by mail, email or fax. If you are an F-1 student, be sure to include your employment information and send a copy of your OPT card/EAD if you have not already given us a copy. Additional information regarding OPT reporting requirements can be found here.

Address Formatting Instructions

SEVIS now uses the U.S. Postal Service address standards, which are listed in a very specific format. Here is an example:

1427 East 60th St
Suite 251
Chicago IL

The USPS listing for the address listed above would be:

1427 E 60TH ST STE 251
CHICAGO IL 60637

Please review the samples below and make sure your address matches the example in the RIGHT column below. If you want to be completely sure that your address meets SEVIS standards, please visit the zip code look-up on the website of the US Postal Service. Along with checking for the zip code the site will also provide the correct address format you need. (SEVIS uses the Postal Service’s system of address verification). The Zip Code website will give you a nine-digit zip code. You only need to enter the first five digits of the zip code, as all nine will not fit.

It meets the SEVIS standard and will flow through systems without problems.

You should not add any additional information, such as building or dormitory names, even if it would appear to clarify your location. (Please note, except for International House and Max Palevsky Residential Commons, the addresses used below are fictitious.)